NCAA Tournament: Arkansas vs. High Point Prediction, Odds, And How To Watch

When a handful of mid-major teams only came close to upsets in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, High Point actually pulled it off.

The No. 12-seeded Panthers (31-4) made enough plays late and defeated No. 5 Wisconsin 83-82 to advance in the NCAA Tournament. With under a minute to go, Chase Johnston made a 3-pointer to cut Wisconsin’s lead to one point and then made a fast-break layup – his first 2-point basket of the season – to lift High Point to a win.

The Panthers have won their last 15 games, some of them by a narrow margin. But if the Wisconsin game was any indication, this means they’re comfortable in clutch situations.

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And the pressure isn’t going away as High Point advances in the second round of March Madness to take on No. 4-seeded Arkansas.

The Razorbacks, who are 27-8 overall, are on a six-game winning streak after winning the SEC Championship over Vanderbilt and then defeating Hawaii in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, 97-78.

Arkansas vs. High Point Odds

High Point is a +11.5 college basketball betting odds underdog against Arkansas, with the Over/Under being 168.5 points as of this writing. 

The moneyline for Arkansas is -700, while it’s +500 for High Point.

Arkansas vs. High Point On TV

The matchup between Arkansas and High Point will be televised on TBS and truTV. The game will tip off at 9:45 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 21. 

The contest is taking place at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.

Arkansas vs. High Point Prediction

I predict High Point will win and therefore cover the 11.5-point spread. I also project the game will go Over 168.5 total points.

High Point proved it can win against high-majors. And the Panthers don’t appear scared of the bright lights of March Madness whatsoever.

Arkansas does have star power. Darius Acuff Jr. is among the top five players in the country with 23 points per game and leads the Razorbacks with 6.6 assists per contest.

Going into the NCAA Tournament, Arkansas was fourth in the nation in scoring with 89.9 points per game. The Razorbacks were also fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.89), 10th in 3-point percentage (38.87%), and 13th in field goal percentage (50%).

Just a couple days ago, I thought Arkansas was going to make a deeper run in the tournament. But I think High Point has too much momentum.

The Panthers are a strong team collectively. Before March Madness, they were third in the country in scoring with 90 PPG and were top 20 with a 49.14% field goal percentage.

Terry Anderson is the leader for High Point. He’s averaging a team-best 16 points as well as 6.1 rebounds per game while shooting 56% from the floor. 

The Panthers flourish when the game is up-tempo. They were third in the country with 18.88 fast-break points per game. 

But despite that high pace, the Panthers take care of the ball. They were second with a plus-7.1 turnover margin and 13th in the nation with a 1.74 assist-to-turnover ratio.

I believe High Point will keep playing at a high level and will advance to the Sweet 16.